Creative Commons on Flickr
Finally! I’m dedicating an entire post to this gluten-free, ancient grain that I use several times per week. Yes, this is the same chia as the “chia-pet” from the 80′s. If you were a kid/teen of that ancient time, then you know what I’m talking about (wink).
Chia will make any meal more joyous, in other words, “healthier”. It’s also one of those foods you barely notice, making it ideal to sneak into your child’s food, AH-HA. Or better yet, educate them on why you’ve added it to their morning cereal or sprinkled it on their dinner (I like that idea even better).
Health benefits of chia:
1. Balances and stabilizes your blood sugar because it slows the effect at which glucose enters the bloodstream, making it ideal for diabetics and those wanting to prevent diabetes. Do you have wild kids and find it hard to calm them down? Along with a balanced diet, managing blood sugar is CRITICAL to good behaviour, attention span and your child’s mood.
2. Improves insulin sensitivity and lower insulin means that it will indirectly help with belly fat as fat in this area is associated with excess insulin (and cortisol).
3. FIBRE-RIFFIC! For all you “BranBud/ALLBRAN-lovers” out there, guess who’s got more fibre than wheat bran that won’t bloat your belly and is GLUTEN-FREE? You guessed it, chia. Bye-bye bran, hello chia. Bran cereals are highly refined, despite their brown colour and are missing many of the essential nutrients and all their good fat – thanks to manufacturing. GO CHIA.
4. Good fat and high omega-3. In fact, the highest omega 3 content in nature – AMAZING HUH? This makes me wanna sing chi-chi-chia everytime I eat it for this very reason. Chia seeds are one of the greatest plant sources of a fatty acid called alpha-linoleic acid (ALA).
5. Contains high amounts of tryptophan, the amino acid precursor of serotonin (happy hormone) and melatonin (sleep/anti-cancer hormone). Real food is a beautiful thing.
6. Lowers cholesterol, blood pressure and high blood sugar after meals – all three problems are considered “Metabolic Syndrome”. If you have metabolic syndrome, then you really need to get some chia into your life and a holistic nutritionist like me to guide you towards Joyous Health (gentle nudge). 
7. My fave reason: You don’t have to grind them like you have to do with flax seeds. Yes, LESS work! Why? Your stomach acids break down the seed very easily, (unlike flaxseeds). If you don’t grind flaxseeds to release the healthy fats then they pass right through you and down la toilette.
8. Nutrients galore! This wee powerhouse of a grain is source of calcium, magnesium, manganese, iron, phosphorous, folic acid important for cardiovascular, bone health, stress reduction, baby-making and more.
You don’t need to go to a voo-doo black magic store to buy this wondrous grain because it’s in most supermarkets now – in the health food section of course. And by the way, the brand SALBA is outrageously overpriced at nearly $26 bucks for a wee bag. Unless Salba can convince me why their chia is the best, I’m suggesting that you buy a no-namer brand and save yourself some bucks!
Here are some ideas for adding this joyous grain to your life:
- Sprinkle on organic yogurt, in your cereal, in a smoothie
- Mix it into pasta sauce (AFTER you cook it, when you are about to serve it)
- Sprinkle it in a sandwich, on your lunch time salad
- Sprinkle on some berries with some cinnamon and a wee bit of kefir for an afternoon snack (kills those sugar cravings)
I hope you enjoy this post as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Joyous health to you,
Joy
Joy McCarthy, Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Health Coach of Joyous Health, loves to inspire others to eat well, live well and be happy. Joy provides complimentary 15 minute consultations.
Joy has clients from all over the world and consults via phone and Skype. Contact Joy today and take the first step to achieving joyous health.
Okay, I’m sold – I PROMISE to give the chia seeds another chance!
GOOD stuff Liz!
I bought these for the first time last week (after reading all your tweets on them
) and have been adding them to my regular foods – my favourite is definitely sprinkling them on top of pasta! Thanks for the tip!
You can also make chia seed pudding with them!
http://gamereviewwiki.com/bikinibirthday/2010/07/15/day-182-raw-day/
Nice! Love chia seeds, and now I have more reasons to love them
I make no bake granola bars for myself and my son and I mix in chia seeds and lots of cinnamon. Yum!
SOUNDS FABULOUS! Would love your recipe!
you can also use chia as an egg substitute
Great suggestion… what do you suggest? 1 tbsp chia per 1 egg? Same as psyllium.
Thanks for this great post! I eat chia seeds, and know that they are “healthy”, but I had no idea what made them so good for you! Now I feel so informed, and can provide some good info when people ask me why I’m eating the seeds from those chia pets!
Hi Joy! I am in love with Chia. There’s a brand out of BC, on the Sunshine Coast, called Holy Crap! And I did say that the first time I tried it. Our writer Cheryl Arkison is writing a piece about it for our Fall issue of the magazine. (And you’re quoted in a story written by the lovely Gillian Young!) It’s coming out soon…
Tamara Komuniecki
Editor-in-Chief, Delish Magazine
Oh my goodness, I love that name “HOLY CRAP”, that’s just awesome. Thanks so much!
Gillian Young is great.
Thanks Tamara! Have a joyous day
Joy
I have been flirting with the idea of trying chia. But I heard the granules are super hard if you don’t soak them for a while… is this true?
You can sprinkle them on salad, put them in a smoothie or if you don’t want to eat them hard (your stomach digestive juices break them down by the way, unlike flaxseeds) then you can soak them in water for under 10 minutes and they become a gel. They are like a broom for your intestines! Amazing at cleaning things out.
Hi!
After reading this post I went out to my local organic store to find some Chia seeds! The only kind I could find were pre-ground! I assume that they will still have the same benefits in this form? I think I’d prefer to have the whole seeds so I’ll keep looking but just wanted to make sure that the “dust” I bought will still have the same benefits.
Yes they just don’t last as long and you must keep them in the fridge. I buy sprouted – those are the best, very digestible!
Because or you, I bought them a couple of weeks ago. I love sprinkling them on oatmeal or cold cereal. I’m trying to get my mother, who has type 2 diabetes to try them.
HI Joy!
I have a question for you – because of your love of Chia seeds, I started eating them & using them… however, one of my dear friends expressed to that there are dangers with eating them (long term, I might add) this is what I found & what she shared:
Individuals on blood thinners such as Warfarin need to take caution when eating chia seeds. They lower blood pressure and act as natural blood thinners. In combination with prescription blood thinners, this can increase bleeding and present health dangers.
Read more: Chia Seed Dangers | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_6770859_chia-seed-dangers.html#ixzz1CGSQ1aC0
help?
Everything on moderation. You wouldn’t eat 12 apples per day or gorge yourself on any food that’s healthy. But saying that chia seeds present dangers is an exaggeration for sure. I eat about 2 tbsp per day. Any food that is a natural anti-coagulant is a good thing ie. foods high in omega 3 – walnuts, fish etc. Don’t worry about it.
Where can I buy these?
Any health food store.
Amazing post! Since reading this a while ago, chia has become a huge part of my diet!
This morning’s breakfast: shake with chia, coconut oil, kale, almond milk, natural peanut butter, cacao, and banana